Former Judge Kimberly Brown withdraws as primary candidate

Former Marion Superior Judge Kimberly J. Brown, who was removed from the bench earlier this month for misconduct, has withdrawn from the Democratic primary election in May.

Brown filed a candidate withdrawal form Friday with the Indiana Election Division, according to a certification order signed by the division’s co-directors Trent Deckard and J. Bradley King. Her name will not appear on the ballot.

Under Indiana law, King explained, a candidate who is disqualified to hold office after the primary filing period has closed can petition the Election Division to have their name removed from the ballot.

A Democrat in the final year of her first term as a Superior Court judge, Brown was removed from the bench March 4. The Supreme Court found Brown was guilty of 46 counts of misconduct that included delaying the release of at least nine defendants from jail, failing to train or supervise court employees, creating a hostile environment for staff and attorneys, and failing to cooperate with the investigation of her misconduct.

Brown's removal from office made her ineligible to serve as a judge again. However, she already had filed to run in the May 6 primary for the Democratic nomination before the Supreme Court removed her from the bench.